I had this idea to do research on the whiteness of Obama (->power). Not white as in white race, but more in a symbolic way. By showing how neutral, pure, honest,… he is. etc.
I planned on using his speeches to do that. I started out indicating the pauses and did work on the neutrality aspect too.
I also edited one of his speeches:
Pauses can be added in many places to add impact to your communications.
- Pause after somebody has spoken and before you speak.
- Pause before a punchline or particularly important point to increase tension and add Emphasis. Pausing at irregular points can also increase tension.
- Pause after a punchline or important points in order to let it sink in.
- Pause between a request phrase and command phrase in the same request sentence.
- Combine pauses with dramatic action, such as uncovering a new product, pointing to something important, etc.
- Use hesitation devices such as ‘ers’ and ‘ums’ to prevent people from interrupting during the pause.<!– hesitation devices –>
- Use Body Language signals to emphasize the pause. A simple way of doing this is to freeze the body, perhaps with an expectant expression on your face. Knowing smiles and looking around whilst making eye-contact also is effective.
source:
http://changingminds.org/techniques/language/persuasive/pauses.htm
